Brundle: Lack of confidence at Mercedes

Mercedes came up with a brave concept for their 2022 F1 car, the W13 that turned heads when it made its paddock debut one year ago with its "Zeropod" concept, as everyone thought the eight-time Constructors' Champions have delivered another Silver masterpiece.

But the reality was totally the opposite as the W13 turned out to be a vicious, bouncy contraption that had Lewis Hamilton and George Russell dreading every minute they spent in its cockpit.

In 2023, Mercedes have kept faith in the slim sidepods concept, and while the bouncing seems to have been sorted, the W14 didn't seem to be fast enough, and there were clearly no happy bunnies in the Mercedes garage.

Giving his opinion on the situation at Mercedes, former F1 driver and respected pundit Martin Brundle spoke to Sky Sports on The F1 Show on Monday.

"It's odd isn't it right now, look at Liverpool for example," Brundle said. "Little nuances, where you change the personnel, and there's maybe a lack of confidence. That's what I'm seeing at Mercedes at the moment.

"I thought last year they would just ace that car really quickly," the Briton added. "When we saw it in the paddock a year ago, it was like: 'Nobody is going to see that for dust', which was wrong.

"Clearly they've still got to finesse it, and they need to do it early. Remember, last year, Verstappen didn't score any points until the second race, and still smashed the world championship.

"They'll need to get in there quickly, will Mercedes Benz, and sort it," the veteran of 158 grands prix concluded.

Mercedes managed to improve their car in 2022, but despite winning in Sao Paulo with George Russell, the W13 remained inconsistent over the course of the season, the team unable to predict whether or not it will work at a certain F1 weekend.

In testing in Bahrain that was concluded last Saturday, Hamilton finished the three-day test second fastest on the final day, over three tenths slower than Red Bull's Sergio Perez, but running a softer tyre compound than that used by the Mexican, meaning the gap is bigger.

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